Dangerous Embrace (Embrace #1) (37 page)

Sarah rested her hand over the small baby bump where the dress formed around it. It wasn’t much of a bump yet and Mark hadn’t even noticed the slight difference in her size. She had always been proud of her flat stomach and defined abs, but today she felt proud and beautiful knowing her body was capable of such a miracle. Her smile widened when she heard Mark call out to her from the bedroom. The sound of his voice sent an electric sensation through her system. Yes. Tonight was definitely the night to tell him about the baby. She felt strong enough to share her news with him and confident of his happiness.

She stepped out of the closet. “What’s wrong with you?”

He froze, his eyes traveled from her toes to her face, and his expression made her stop in her tracks.

“Do you like it?”

Mark pulled the tie off as he moved to her, pulling her up into a kiss so deep she could hardly hold herself up. “We are not leaving this house.”

One hand moved up her back and into her wild curls, and the other cupped her hip. His lips went straight to her bare shoulder and trailed kisses down her arm.

“Stop—we are going to this party.” She inhaled sharply when his right hand found her breast, and she actually considered staying home with him.

He smiled a crooked smile. “You’re not wearing a bra.”

“With this dress?”

He cupped her breast and rubbed his thumb over her hard nipple. “I love your hard body and I can’t believe the way this dress brings out your stormy eyes.”

Sarah laughed and tried to pull out of his clutches, pretending to be annoyed, but loving his attention.

“I hope you love me for more than my body.” Because in a few months she was going to be really fat and loving every second of it.

When she turned, he grabbed her from behind and wrapped his hands around her, resting them on their baby. “I love everything about you. Don’t forget that.”

He cupped her small bump, and she held her breath, waiting for him to comment on the little bit of weight she’d gained, but he didn’t seem to notice.

“Hurry up or we’re going to be late.” She moved away from him and went back to the closet to get her wrap and add her jewelry.

A few minutes later, she came out of the closet and was greeted by Mark, fully dressed in the Armani tuxedo he didn’t want to wear.

“You look...wow!” She grinned at him. “Do you feel better about wearing it now that it’s on?”

“If I get the pleasure of peeling you out of that dress later, I can tolerate this suit.”

~

When they arrived at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel, Mark handed in their tickets and checked his coat.

“You’re freezing,” he said, rubbing her arms trying to warm her.

“I’ll warm up in a minute. Let’s get a drink.” She pulled him to the bar.

“One cranberry juice and seven-up, one shot of Patrón with lime, and a Tequila Sunrise.”

“I don’t get a shot?” he asked.

“The shot is for you. I’m not drinking so I can drive us home.”

“We could always get a room here.”

“Maybe...but I’m still not drinking.” He reached around, picked up her drink, handed it to her, and then he drank his shot of tequila. “Since when do you not want to drink?”

“I want to remember every moment of this night,” she said, pulling him to a table. “I love this. I love being here with you and enjoying your company without the distractions.”

“You don’t think all these people and loud music is a distraction?”

“Here, nobody knows us, we’re anonymous. No questions, no onlookers, no cops, and no security agents following us around.”

“That’s true, but if we hide the car in the garage and pretend we’re not home, then I can get you out of this dress.”

“Hmm, there is that.” She winked. He was right, but being out in public with him and not having all their troubles hanging over her head felt like a different experience to her.

She took in the sights. The crowded room had big, bright silver and blue balloons and streamers everywhere she looked. They made the place look like a winter wonderland, although instead of cold, it felt warm and comforting.

All the women were dressed for the red carpet, and all the men could have given James Bond a run for his money. The confetti that littered the stark white tablecloths sparkled when the light touched it. People in their formal wear moved around the dance floor, and before she could lean in to ask him, Mark was pulling her to her feet.

Sarah laughed as he dipped her low and kissed her bare shoulder. When she looked up, she noticed the balloons littering the ceiling in every shade of dark blue to simulate the night sky. Here and there were a few white balloons standing in place of the stars. The effect was breathtaking.

After dancing through several songs, Mark led her off the dance floor and into an embrace that made her heart stop. The drinks were starting to get to him. He couldn’t wipe the big grin off his face and his cheeks were flushed.

“I love you,” he breathed in her ear. “I could eat you alive I love you so much. Will you marry me?” he asked before kissing her and nipping on her lower lip.

Sarah drew back and stared into his eyes, not sure if he was serious or not.

Mark released her and pulled a little leather pouch out of his pocket and handed it to her.

She pulled the strings and let the ring drop out and onto her palm.

“Sarah, I love you and I know this seems sudden...I want to be with you and take care of you. I want you to love me and take care of me. I want you to marry me.”

Sarah gripped the ring tight in her hand, placed it over her stomach, and then lifted her other hand over her mouth.

His eyes never left hers and sweat beaded on her forehead. Marriage, something she swore she’d never want. From everything she’d ever seen, marriage only ruined good relationships. Look at her parents...they were a complete disaster as had been nearly every relationship her mother had ever had. After everything that had happened to her in her life—abusive boyfriend, a lost child, name changes, moving around and always feeling lost—and now a pregnancy when she never thought it was possible. But what did she want for her child? A family...a mother and father in love, a brother like Jamie, and God how she’d love to be a mother to that sweet little boy.

“You’re breaking my heart here,” Mark said, interrupting her thoughts. “Say something please.”

“Mark, I...” She rubbed her face. “I...I’ve never believed in marriage. Look at you and Ali—look at Ali and Carl.”

“I get that, but I have to believe that you have faith in me...this is you and me, baby. You can’t compare this to anyone else. It’s just us. We’re already moving in together...let’s just do it right and make it legal. We’ll be a family—me, you and Jamie.”

He reached down and took the fisted hand she held over her stomach and pried the ring from her tightly wound fingers. He held it up and said, “If you need time to think about it, I can wait for an answer.”

As he said this, his smile creased into a slight frown, and that slight frown was all the convincing she needed. She wanted to make him happy and she wanted happiness for herself. A family—this family—was exactly what she wanted.

“I don’t need to think about it, I will marry you.”

Mark froze. “What did you say?”

She laughed and said, “I will marry you.”

Mark picked her up and spun her around, forcing people to clear a space for them.

“Oh my God, I thought you were going to say no.” He pulled back to look into her eyes. “Do you mean it?”

“I mean it. I want to be your wife.”

“Let’s get a glass of champagne and toast,” he said, pulling her to the bar. He handed her a glass, took one for himself, and then led her to a quiet corner where they could have some privacy.

When he found a quiet spot, he turned around and pulled her close, lifting his hand up the bare skin of her back.

“To your beautiful eyes.” He held up his glass. “The windows to your beautiful soul.” He tipped his glass toward hers and leaned in, kissing her.

She pulled back. “My turn.”

She looked down at his chest and thought for a second. She wanted to tell him about the baby, right then, while he still wore that stunning smile, but she knew it should wait until they were alone and he was sober.

Her eyes lifted to meet his. “You’ve taught me what love feels like and you’ve given me a home in your arms. This is to you, to our future, and to a long life together.”

They stared into each other eyes, clinking their glasses again before Mark pulled her into a tight one-arm embrace. She moved her hands around his neck, letting the champagne glass dangle as she leaned in, feeling the length of him.

“Sarah Lange!”

Sarah felt the atmospheric shift she’d been waiting for. Her champagne glass slipped from between her fingers and her own words rang in her head, but they were morphed as if spoken in slow motion.
Kevin Lewis will find me and he will finish what he started. He will kill me.

She didn’t hear her champagne hit the floor, but it shattered into millions of tiny, diamond-size pieces of glass as it smashed at Mark’s feet.

Mark withdrew, still smiling and met her panicked eyes. It felt like a lifetime before she could turn her head toward the person whose voice she had heard so many times in her nightmares.

“It is Sarah Lange.”

Sarah slid her arms from around Mark’s neck, and a tremble traveled through her body.

“Kevin Lewis.” Her voice shook like a frightened child’s.

Mark stiffened next to her and shifted his body between her and Kevin with a protective arm across her front, clapped on her hip.

“Sarah...it’s been a long time.” When he said it, a murderous look crossed his face, and his dark eyes focused on Mark’s hand.

“Yeah.” She forced a steady voice while her insides writhed in nervous energy and discomfort. “What are you doing in San Francisco, Kevin?”

“I’m staying here at the Sir Francis Drake on invitation from a high-dollar client.” He gave her a seething look. “What are
you
doing in San Francisco? I thought you were in Tennessee?”

“Ah—I was, but now I’m ah...staying in Colorado. I moved there about eight months ago. I’m visiting friends...for Christmas.”

“Is this your husband?” he asked, staring Mark up and down.

“Not yet,” Mark said in a tone that prickled down her spine.

“This is Mark...Son-ders,” she stuttered. Mark looked at her sideways, not bothering to hold out his hand to shake Kevin’s. “He’s a police officer in Denver.”

“Her fiancé,” he said, finishing her introduction.

“Mark, this is Kevin Lewis, he...we were...” Her voice cracked from the dryness in her throat. The more she tried to talk, the more her chest felt as if her lungs were full of ice.

Sarah had both her hands wrapped around Mark’s arm with a death grip to hide the shaking in her body. Her instincts told her to run, but her feet felt like concrete blocks holding her in place.

“Sarah and I were engaged once...a long time ago,” Kevin finished for her. “You look good. I’m glad to see you’re taking care of yourself.” He looked her up and down, and every muscle in Mark’s body flexed in protest.

“I went to Nashville and tried to look you up but I couldn’t find you. I met Charlie. It was a nice surprise since I’d heard so much about him.”

“Charlie died,” she managed to get out.

“Yeah, I met him
just
before he died,” he said pointedly. “Charlie didn’t seem to know where you were, even though I told him I was sure you were in Nashville.” His eyes darkened. “I don’t know why he would lie.”

“I wasn’t in Nashville. I lived in Memphis,” Sarah said, trying to pull off confusion.

“Memphis...hmm, you don’t have much of an accent.” He chuckled and looked at Mark. “When I first met Sarah, she had a heavy Southern twang. Sometimes I couldn’t understand her. It took about a year for her to lose it.” He let his eyes drop to the floor and his expression saddened.

Sarah relaxed a little. Maybe he was a different person than the one she had left all those years ago. This thought was washed away when he looked back up at her. Their eyes met again, and she saw the hunter she remembered, the monster that had beaten her and killed her child.

Sarah straightened her back and looked at him with all the contempt and hatred she had buried for eight years. She loosened her grip on Mark’s arm and said, “Excuse us, Kevin, but we were on our way out.”

Mark smiled and turned into her, putting his arm around her waist and pulling her away from Kevin. She gave Kevin one last look, but cringed when his eyes focused on Mark’s grip around her waist.

“Well, I’m sure we’ll run into each other again soon.” Her body stiffened at the threat, but she kept moving with Mark.

“We need to leave,” she said, fighting to control her trembling. Her steps were hurried, but Mark held her back from running.

“I know, baby. I’ve got you.”